When 80-year-old Maya Maker sat down to plan a six-day itinerary across Karnataka for a visiting friend, she expected it to take hours.
Her guest was interested in geology, history, temples and natural formations, so there were routes to map, places to shortlist and logistics to work out.
Then Maya tried something she had recently learnt in an online class.
Using Meta AI on WhatsApp, she began asking questions, refining prompts and exploring suggestions. Within minutes, she had a framework that might otherwise have taken days to put together.
“It saved me so much time,” she recalls. “It just got me thinking laterally.”
The itinerary turned into a memorable journey. Her guest, a geology professor from Australia, spent six days exploring Karnataka with Maya, discussing everything from rock formations to local history.
For Maya, the experience was about more than planning a successful trip. It showed her that age did not have to be a barrier to learning new technology.
That belief has brought thousands of senior citizens like her to The Social Paathshala.
Learning never stopped at 80
Maya has never been someone who quietly settled into old age.
After spending nearly 34 years in Muscat, she returned to India in 2018 and found herself in a country that had undergone a dramatic digital transformation. Payments had moved online, services were increasingly app-based, and everyday tasks often required some knowledge of technology.
“I only knew how to use an ATM card to get cash out,” she says. “After coming here, everything was done online, and I was getting into a real stew.”
Like many seniors, Maya initially relied on neighbours for help. They were happy to assist, but she disliked having to depend on others for tasks she felt she should be able to manage herself.
It was especially frustrating because she had always been curious and eager to learn.
“I’m not the sort of person who gives in to old age,” she says. “I’m the person who went trekking at the age of 70. I’m always learning.”
So when she heard about an online platform that taught technology to older adults, she signed up immediately.
Mahima started by teaching her own mother and aunts, learning that sometimes the most important digital lessons are the ones younger users take for granted.
Today, Maya’s desk is stacked with handwritten notes from every session she has attended.
“I have a dreadful memory,” she says with a laugh. “So even if I don’t remember it, I still have my notes to refer to.”
Her notes cover everything from QR-code payments and WhatsApp features to Google Drive, AI tools, digital organisation and smartphone shortcuts.
More importantly, they have helped her feel more comfortable using technology on her own.
A casual comment that became a mission
The person behind Maya’s learning journey is Mahima Bhalotia, founder of The Social Paathshala.
Mahima’s own career path was far removed from teaching technology to senior citizens.
She began by studying Chartered Accountancy and cleared IPCC before pursuing a master’s degree in Luxury Goods and Services Management in Milan. She later worked in marketing and communications at Marriott International in Mumbai.
Ironically, the idea for her future venture came during one of those marketing meetings.
As part of her role, Mahima was helping train hotel employees to use social media more effectively. During a lunch discussion, she noticed her boss receiving repeated calls from his mother asking for help booking an Uber.
After the third call, he joked, “Why are we training these employees? Parents need the training the most.”
Unlike everyone else, Mahima didn’t laugh it off.
“I took it very seriously,” she says. “I thought it was a wonderful idea.”
The comment stayed with her.
Soon, she began noticing how many older adults depended on family members for basic digital tasks. Booking a cab, joining an online meeting or making a payment could become difficult when they weren’t confident using the technology involved.
What began with a casual comment about helping parents use technology became Mahima Bhalotia’s mission to make digital learning accessible to older adults.
The idea resurfaced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
While waiting for a new job opportunity that had been delayed by the lockdown, Mahima’s mother encouraged her to revisit the concept.
“My mother felt it was the right time to make more people tech-savvy because they were sitting at home,” she says.
The Social Paathshala officially launched in August 2020.
Starting with family, one lesson at a time
Before teaching strangers, Mahima decided to test her approach with her own family.
Her first learners included her mother and aunts.
Together, they explored WhatsApp basics — sharing locations, sending messages, making video calls and understanding features that many younger users take for granted.
The experience taught Mahima something important: most technology courses assume that learners already have some familiarity with digital tools. Many seniors don’t.
“Coursera would not cover basics like WhatsApp, CC, BCC, reply, forward, or things like that,” she explains.
So she designed her curriculum differently.
When planning a lesson, Mahima would open an app and go through every feature visible on the screen.
From using Google Lens on nature walks to navigating airports with DigiYatra, seniors are finding new ways to use technology in everyday life.
“I would choose whatever I could see on the interface and put that into my syllabus,” she says.
That meant teaching everything from changing a WhatsApp profile picture to using voice notes, updating status messages, adjusting privacy settings and navigating a smartphone.
Nothing was considered too basic.
And that, she realised, was exactly what her learners needed.
More than a technology class
Over the last six years, The Social Paathshala has grown into a structured learning platform for people aged 50 and above.
Its classes cover smartphone basics, WhatsApp, video calling, digital payments, social media, online safety, Zoom, Google tools and, increasingly, artificial intelligence.
The format is deliberately simple.
Group classes are limited to around 15–20 learners and take place online through Zoom. Mahima shares her phone screen, demonstrates features in real time and sometimes uses her camera to physically point to buttons when learners need extra help.
Each class ends with a revision session, and participants receive a recording they can revisit later.
Since 2020, The Social Paathshala has trained more than 10,000 older adults.
The support doesn’t end when the class does.
Many learners struggle with basic tasks such as joining a Zoom meeting, moving between apps or understanding phone settings. To help them get started, Mahima offers one-on-one guidance, WhatsApp support, voice-note assistance and onboarding sessions before classes begin.
The aim is not just to teach people how technology works, but to make it feel less intimidating.
Building confidence, one lesson at a time
For 69-year-old Dr Vineeta Kaushik, technology was never entirely unfamiliar.
A medical practitioner who served the Central Government for more than 35 years in clinical, teaching and administrative roles, she was already comfortable using WhatsApp, YouTube and online services. But she felt there was always more to learn.
“Through Mahima, we learnt a lot of add-on features and safety,” she says. “She taught us things like Google Maps, Google Photos, privacy, data security — all very patiently.”
What stood out was not just what Mahima taught, but how she taught it.
“Patience was, of course, a remarkable feature because something new doesn’t immediately get absorbed,” Dr Kaushik says.
“But she also understood that different people use different phones. She would first explain it for iPhone users and then say, ‘Android people, please hang on, I’ll come to you next.’ She never hesitated to repeat something or explain it in detail.”
The classroom has become a community too, bringing older learners from different cities and countries together to learn, share stories and support one another.
That approach has helped learners, including those in their eighties, keep up without feeling overwhelmed.
Today, Dr Kaushik regularly uses digital payments, Zoom, WhatsApp, YouTube and online learning platforms with greater confidence than before.
“Keep learning and upgrading your skills,” she says simply. “Age is just a number.”
Many of The Social Paathshala’s other learners have found their own uses for what they learn.
Some use Google Lens to identify birds during nature walks. Others have learnt to use DigiYatra to navigate airports independently. Several have started using AI to draft emails, organise recipes or plan holidays.
“The response to AI has been marvellous,” says Mahima. “I’ve conducted three AI sessions so far and they’ve had an average of around 25 participants.”
She often introduces seniors to ChatGPT and Meta AI by demonstrating voice mode first, allowing them to speak instead of type.
“As their typing speed is slow, voice mode becomes really helpful,” she explains.
A classroom that feels like a community
Technology may bring people to The Social Paathshala, but relationships are often what keep them coming back.
Mahima says the classes have become spaces where learners from different cities and even countries interact, exchange stories and support one another.
Some participants have attended sessions since the initiative began in 2020.
One of them is Captain Haridas, who has joined nearly every class over the last six years.
Another is 84 -year-old paediatrician Dr. Madhuri Salgar, who continues to travel for work. After attending a session on DigiYatra, she messaged Mahima to tell her how much easier airport travel had become.
The classes are carefully paced. Each session lasts around 75-90 minutes and ends with a recap. Recordings are then shared so participants can revisit the lessons at their own pace.
That reassurance can be as important as the lessons themselves.
For Maya and thousands like her, every new lesson is a reminder that there is always something more to learn, try and discover.
Many seniors join with a fear of “doing something wrong” — clicking the wrong button, making a payment incorrectly or falling victim to online fraud.
The goal, therefore, is not simply to teach them which buttons to press. It is to help them feel capable of using the technology themselves.
More than digital literacy
Since launching in August 2020, The Social Paathshala has trained more than 10,000 older adults across multiple countries through its online programmes.
But for Mahima, the biggest milestones rarely come in the form of numbers. They arrive in personal moments.
She recalls visiting one of her students in Mumbai for an offline session. The woman, who was undergoing dialysis and living with multiple health conditions, spent much of the lesson sharing stories from her life.
“When I was leaving, she hugged me, kissed me, and treated me like a granddaughter,” Mahima says. “There was so much love in her eyes.”
The encounter reminded Mahima that what she had built was about more than digital education.
“I don’t feel like I’m running a business,” she says. “I feel like I’m running a school for elderly people who want to enjoy life.”
From WhatsApp to AI, these seniors are showing that technology can open up a whole new world of possibilities.
Many of her students now speak to her about everything from travel plans and family milestones to personal frustrations. Between lessons on WhatsApp and Zoom, The Social Paathshala has also become a place for companionship.
“It’s become like a counselling session, a teaching session and an emotional empowerment session — all rolled into one.”
A lifelong student
Ask Maya what message she would like to leave for others, and her answer comes without hesitation.
“I don’t believe in this age,” she says with a laugh.
She has carried that belief with her for decades.
“When I was 18, I said I would be a perpetual student. I think I’ve proved it.”
Her advice is simple: never stop learning, stay curious, exercise both the body and the mind, and surround yourself with people who inspire you to keep growing.
For Maya, technology was never really about learning how to use WhatsApp, generate AI images or create travel itineraries.
It was about holding on to something she has valued all her life — the freedom to keep discovering.
And as thousands of seniors continue logging into Mahima’s classes, they are showing that curiosity doesn’t come with an expiry date.
Sometimes, all it takes is someone patient enough to say, “Let’s learn this together.”
All images courtesy Mahima Bhalotia
